Bryan Beller | “Thanks in Advance”

Many of us are familiar with Bryan Beller as a contributing editor for Bass Player Magazine. You may also know that he can be seen touring with Steve Vai and possibly through past work with Dweezil Zappa’s “Project Z”. Given only that amount of information, one could safely assume that the dude can play! That’s not the whole story, tho.. Bryan’s newest release, “Thanks in Advance” brings us a wealth of amazing tone (really… I LOVE the sound he gets on this CD with his Mike Lull 5 string), wonderful compositions, killer grooves & pure musicality. I was immediately struck by the first track. “Snooze Bar” displays Jeff Buckley-esque sensitivity and melancholic chordal work and some of the most evocative guitar melodies I’ve heard in some time. Throughout the journey this disc offers, you can expect everything from heavy Tool like riffs, swinging solos, gritty blues-steeped guitar work & fusion workouts (and even a pop-gold tune in there!). Throughout, however, Bryan really shines with his respect for the music above all else and his BASS PLAYING is stellar. If I wasn’t a bass player, I’d be on the phone hiring this guy myself. He manages to be very melodic and lyrical with his playing while never stepping inappropriately out of his duty as a bass player. When it’s time to solo, Bryan throws down like a big dog, but when he’s playing bass he’s every band leaders or songwriter’s dream. Thoughtful, appropriate, soulful and tasty all at the same time. Nice work Bry!